Form a North Dakota LLC or Incorporate Online

The State of North Dakota isn't one of our most populous states, but in my opinion it's one of my favorites.  It is the home to the Bison, and while it does have a few Bison running around, I mean it is the home to the University of North Dakota Bison.  In recent years North Dakota has become a hub for energy in the United States.  There are many drillers, frackers, coal mining, and natural gas producers here.  This means that the economy of North Dakota has been growing at a fast pace.  It is a business friendly state, that is home to thousands of businesses.  You may choose to form an LLC in North Dakota or to Incorporate in ND using the tips, samples, links and forms found on this page.  Let's talk about these two important filing types below.

Form an LLC in North Dakota

The LLC is an important filing type in all 50 states, and North Dakota is included in this.  There are a few reasons why a business owner chooses to form an LLC so let's discuss these:

  1. limited liability protection - The LLC structure will provide their owners with a separation between their business and personal assets.  The benefit of this is in the event that a creditor or customer wants to collect from a lawsuit against your business.  So if you own a home, other assets, etc, these will be considered part of your personal assets and not part of the business.  In order to get the benefit of limited liability protection the business will have to be operated properly.  This means that the business will be operated totally separate from your personal assets, expenses, etc.  Speak to an attorney if you have specific issues regarding this, and for more detail instructions.
  2. pass through taxation - The LLC is by default considered a pass through entity.  This means that as income is earned by the business it will automatically be pass to your personal tax return via a K1.  The reason that business owners like this is to avoid the "double taxation" that can affect C corporations.

Finding a Business Name for your LLC

Finding a good name for a LLC isn't always an easy process.  But with our tips, hopefully you can find a good name that is relevant for your business.  The first thing that you will want to do, is to think about your business and the product or service that you provide.  Most likely you have a perfect name in mind, but the next part is seeing if that name is available for you in the State of ND.  To do this, you will search for a business name in North Dakota.  Once your find a good name you may want to also check GoDaddy.com to see if a matching domain name is also available.  Just note, that the domain name and the business name do not have to match or even be similar.  You can associate them by a DBA if they are quite different.

You must also end your LLC in one of the following required endings:

  • "Limited Liability Company"
  • "LLC"
  • "L.L.C"

Incorporate in North Dakota

There is a second type of entity that many business owners file for, and this is called the Corporation.  The corporation is similar to the LLC in that it provides the benefit of limited liability protection, as long as you operate the business correctly.  If you don't do what is required to maintain the limited liability protection, then the legal system can pierce the corporate veil making your personal assets subject in a lawsuit.  There are two types of main profit corporations:

  1. C corporation - By default the C corporation is what all corps are initially when they are filed.  The C corporation can be though of as a stand alone entity that is responsible for paying it's own taxes.  The IRS considers this as a taxpayer.  To think about this and understand it better, consider Microsoft corporation.  While this business was formed initially by Bill Gates, there are thousands of shareholders, and a complex corporate structure.  No individual shareholder is responsible for writing a check if taxes are due.  Instead the corporation and its officers must file taxes and pay in the money due for any tax obligations.
  2. S corporation - The next type of corp is exciting for many small business owners.  The reason for this, is that it can offer a great benefit to some in the form of pass through taxation.  This type of tax treatment is similar to an LLC, and will help the shareholders to avoid any double taxation from the C corp.  The concept of double taxation arises when a c-corp pays taxes on initial income, then the shareholders also pay taxes on the distributions that are considered dividends.  

Find a Corporation Name in ND

To search for a corporation name in ND, you will need to visit the states website and conduct a search online.  To search, you may want to look at both Godaddy as well as the state website.  This may be more needed for a person who wants to make sure that their business name and website are similar.  Now, they don' t need o be similar and they can be associated with a DBA filing or fictitious name registration.

North Dakota Secretary of State Links:
Secretary of State Address :
Secretary of State
State of North Dakota
600 E Boulevard Avenue Dept 108
Bismarck ND 58505-0500
Secretary of State Phone :
701-328-2900
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